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Russell Westbrook is expected to return to the lineup Wednesday after a one-game absence following surgery to repair a facial fracture. Westbrook participated in the majority of the team’s practice Tuesday while wearing a clear protective mask on his face.

Construction began in mid-February on the new Museum of the Bible being built in Washington, D.C. by the Green Family of Oklahoma. Recently, more details about the project have surfaced. The 430,000-square-foot museum is to be dedicated to the impact, history and narrative of the Bible and the plan is to open it in 2017 […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Saying every girl "has value," President Barack Obama announced a more focused government effort Tuesday to help tens of millions of girls around the world attend and stay in school. Michelle Obama said she's heading to Japan and Cambodia later this month to promote it. Obama said that, as the father of "two fabulous, extraordinary, awesome young women," he wants to help make sure that "no girl out there is denied her chance to be a strong, capable woman." Yet more than 60 million girls are being denied schooling for a variety of reasons, he said. Obama said the U.S. works quietly to support educating girls, but its many programs must become a single, coordinated strategy.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a direct challenge to the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stood before Congress on Tuesday and bluntly warned the U.S. that an emerging nuclear agreement with Iran "paves Iran's path to the bomb." President Barack Obama pushed back sternly, saying the U.S. would never sign such a deal and Netanyahu was offering no useful alternative. In the U.S. spotlight for a day, the Israeli leader showed no uncertainty. "This is a bad deal. It is a very bad deal. We are better off without it," he declared in an emotionally charged speech that was arranged by Republicans, aggravated his already-strained relations with Obama and gambled with the longstanding bipartisan congressional support for Israel

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bitterly admitting defeat, the Republican-controlled Congress sent legislation to President Barack Obama on Tuesday that funds the Department of Homeland Security without any of the immigration-related concessions they demanded for months. "Sanity is prevailing," said Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., a former chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, before the House voted 257-167 in favor of the $40 billion spending bill, which Obama was expected to sign promptly. All 182 Democrats present voted for the bill, while it received only 75 Republican "yes" votes. The outcome averted a partial agency shutdown which would have begun Friday at midnight.

Blake Griffin has intensified his workouts since undergoing elbow surgery and could return as soon as Sunday, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The former OU star is close to four weeks removed from surgery to remove a staph infection from his right elbow. If he returns Sunday, Griffin will have sat out 11 games.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two major U.S airlines say they will no longer accept rechargeable battery shipments as new government tests confirm that explosions and violent fires are likely to occur when large numbers of batteries enclosed in cargo containers overheat. Tests conducted last month by the Federal Aviation Administration show that rechargeable batteries, also called lithium-ion batteries, consistently emit explosive gases when they overheat or short-circuit, The Associated Press has learned. In the recent tests, as well as other FAA tests last year, the buildup of gases — primarily hydrogen — led to fierce explosions.

PUCON, Chile (AP) — One of South America's most active volcanoes erupted early Tuesday in southern Chile, spewing heavy smoke into the air as lava surged down its slopes, prompting authorities to evacuate thousands of people. The Villarrica volcano erupted around 3 a.m. local time, according to the National Emergency Office, which issued a red alert and ordered evacuations. Local media showed images of the volcano bursting at the top, glowing in the dark amid heavy smoke and rivers of lava. Authorities worried that mudslides caused by melting snow could endanger nearby communities, but no injuries were reported.

On Monday, March 9th (next week), The Oklahoman will be hosting another Oklahoman VIP tour and visit with developers for subscribers. A lot of readers have expressed interest in the Hotel Marion at 110 NW 10, a 108-year-old gem of a building which was boarded up and on the verge of collapse for […]

Johny Hendricks has won an NCAA wrestling national championship and a UFC title. Now, he's trying to win in the kitchen.
Hendricks is financially backing Big Rigg Steakhouse in Midlothian, Texas, which he opened in January. He's working with family members and even bussing tables.
In the piece from the Dallas Morning News, Hendricks talks about focusing on giving back to Midlothain, the town he's settled with his wife and three daughters.

There couldn’t be better timing for me to receive survey results that talking sports in the workplace works for your career. I just today interviewed Darren Head, CEO of Cytovance Biologics, who told me that his ability to do nonreturnable jump serves in a companywide volleyball tournament is what won him a spot in an […]

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia prison officials were indecisive about whether to proceed with a cloudy lethal injection drug, at one point saying they weren't sure whether they checked "this week's or last week's" batch, according to court documents. Ultimately, they postponed the execution of Kelly Renee Gissendaner late Monday night. A day later, they decided to temporarily halt all executions until they could more carefully analyze the cloudy pentobarbital. The cloudy drug bolstered death penalty opponents, who have been vocal in their opposition after several botched executions in other parts of the country and the increasing use of compounding pharmacies for execution drugs. Gissendaner had originally been set for execut